What does the National Onion Association in Greeley have to do with ocean policy? It’s a good question, and even though I tend to repeat “every state is an ocean state” on every possible occasion, it doesn’t seem to make sense that the lobbying and...
People who know I work for Ocean Conservancy, a marine-focused environmental NGO, often ask me, “So what fish can I eat?” Unfortunately, there is no single, simple, easy answer to this question, so my facile (and facetious) “None!” is usually followed by a more detailed...
Disasters do not just happen, and the physical environment is only one of many factors that causes or exacerbates disasters. Understanding the combination of ecological and sociocultural elements that create vulnerability to risk is key to reducing that vulnerability. Power relations, ideologies, and social constructions...
Every state is an ocean state. I have said it before – in this very column, Earth Matters – and it is a common refrain among those who work on ocean issues. This is not just because we are looking for ways to interest people, who...
Corporations and government do mix. But the result can be a toxic concoction. Quite literally, especially when transactions involve agricultural and food policy. While corporations do bring important information to the table and have a definite role to play in the regulatory process, when corporate representatives...
Academic and professional conferences, in my experience, produce very few “WOW” moments. So when I came down to St. Petersburg, Florida, for the Coastal Counties Summit this week, I expected to hear some good talks, make a few contacts and grab some time to write...
The news has migrated from the front page to back pages, but it's still news: Honeybees are dying. So many bees have bitten the dust the phenomenon has a name: Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD). And to date, it has been hard to establish a definitive...
Editor's Note: This is another installment of a weekly series by the team of scholars/dynamic enviro-activists Anna Zivian and Billy Mason. Both have deep ties to Telluride, but have gone out into the world to make a difference. They are. Strawberries may just have gotten a...
In my last post, I explained that the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is reviewing the application for the commercialization of AquAdvantage salmon -- genetically modified salmon. Although the public at large finds confidence in “FDA approved” products, I discussed why perhaps this...
The fight over genetically modified salmon In this column, I plan to talk about genetically modified salmon: Am I eating it? What is it? Why is it a problem? First – You are not eating it… yet. However, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is currently...
